The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, relates to a breastfeeding and, more particularly, but not exclusively, to a method and device for monitoring breastfeeding by capacitance measurement.
It is recognized that breastfeeding is beneficial for newborns as well as mothers. Pediatricians and other health care providers promote breastfeeding as a normal part of daily life, and encourage mothers to continue breastfeeding for as long as mutually desired.
Breastfeeding is beneficial for newborns from the standpoint of general health, growth, development. In particular, breastfeeding significantly decreases the risk for a large number of acute and chronic diseases. For example, studies show that breastfed babies are less likely to get diarrhea, ear infections, respiratory infections, bacteremia, bacterial meningitis, botulism, necrotizing enterocolitis, and urinary tract infections. In addition, breastfeeding provide the baby with a sense of closeness, warmth and security.
Many studies indicate that breastfeeding is also beneficial to the mother. For example, statistically, breastfeeding mothers return to their normal weight more rapidly. Breastfeeding is also known as one of the factors that delay the resumption of ovulation, which may be beneficial for mothers or families who wish to increase child spacing.
Occasionally, the amount of mother milk consumed by breastfed babies is not sufficient. When a breastfed baby enters a stress condition, it is desired to monitor the amount of milk consumed by the breastfed baby so as to determine whether or not lack of feeding is one of the sources of the stress. Several techniques are known for monitoring breastfeeding.
The most widely employed technique is weight subtraction. In this technique, the baby's weight is measured before and after breastfeeding, and the amount of milk consumption is calculated by subtracting the two weights.
Another technique is disclosed in Daly et al., Exp. Physiology, 77, 79-87 (1992). In this technique, changes in breast volume are traced by photographing the breast before and after feeding.
U.S. Published Application No. 20058271913 and International Patent Publication No. WO 2006/054287 disclose a technique in which a volumetric flow sensor is placed inside a silicon nipple cap through which the baby suckles. The milk flow data from the sensor is converted into milk volume data which is displayed a display monitor.
International Patent Publication No. WO 2006/054287 discloses breastfeeding monitoring via Doppler-shift measurements. an ultra-sonic Doppler-effect transmitter and receiver probes positioned proximate to the nipple are activated during the breastfeeding session to measure the amount of flow through the nipple. The amount of flow is translated and accumulated into milk volume.